Sandra Yu Rueger, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Psychology
On Faculty since 2011

Phone: (630)752-5753
Fax: (630)752-7033
Email:

Education

Ph.D., Clinical Psychology, Northern Illinois University, 2010

     Predoctoral Internship, Children’s Memorial Hospital, Chicago, 2010
     Postdoctoral Fellowship in Substance Abuse, The University of Chicago, 2011

M.A., Clinical Psychology, Wheaton College, 1989

B.A., Psychology, Northwestern University, 1985

Licensure:
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (#166000356), State of Illinois, 1995

About Sandra Yu Rueger

Sandra Yu Rueger is new to Wheaton College this year.  She worked as a licensed marriage and family therapist in various mental health settings (including community mental health centers, church-based counseling center, and private practice) for over 15 years before embarking on doctoral studies to focus her energies on clinical research.  As a clinician, Dr. Rueger emphasizes the use of empirically-supported approaches, and specializes in cognitive-behavioral therapy for mood and anxiety disorders and nicotine addiction, and family-based treatment of child behavior problems.  As a researcher, she aims to add to the scientific understanding of risk and resilience factors related to coping with stress, and inform clinical practice in the prevention and treatment of depression and substance use disorders. She is looking forward to working with doctoral students to support their research interests, and also welcomes active involvement of undergraduate students in her research lab.

When not working, Dr. Rueger enjoys spending time with her family and friends.  She has recently taken up running again, and hopes to reacquaint herself with other former hobbies, such as gardening and scrapbooking.  She and her family worship at Church of the Savior.

Courses Taught

  • 636  Family Systems Theory
  • 738  Family Theory and Therapy
  • 797  Practica Seminar group

Membership in Professional Societies

  • American Psychological Association
  • Society for Research on Child Development 
  • Association for Psychological Science 
  • Research Society on Alcoholism

Research

Dr. Rueger’s research interests focus on individual differences in responses to stress, and the risk and resilience factors related to adaptive coping and persistence in the face of negative events.  She is particularly interested in vulnerabilities related to pessimistic thinking patterns, and the protective role of social relationships, especially during life transitions. She also has interests in the development and testing of assessment instruments used in research.

Dr. Rueger is currently working on a longitudinal study, called “Adolescents Moving On Study” (AMOS), which is focused on the transition from adolescence into early adulthood.  Dr. Rueger directs the Youth Risk and Resilience Lab.

Grants

Rueger, S. Y. (2010-2011).  Alcohol Stimulation and Sedation in Binge Drinkers. Research Supplement to Promote Diversity in Health-related Research. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA Grant #R01 AA013746-S). Funding: $56,000 total direct costs.

Papers Published and/or Presented

Peer-Reviewed Publications

  • Rueger, S. Y., Malecki, C. K., & Demaray, M. K. (2011, in press). Stability of peer victimization in early adolescence: Effects of timing and duration. Journal of School Psychology.
  • Rueger, S. Y., & Malecki, C. K. (2011). Effects of stress, attributional style, and perceived parental support on depressive symptoms in early adolescence: A prospective analysis. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 40, 347-359.
  • Rueger, S. Y., Lovejoy, M. C., Katz, R., & Risser, H. J. (2011). Relationship between parental affect and parenting behavior: A meta-analytic review. Parenting: Science and Practice, 11, 1-33.
  • Rueger, S. Y., Haines, B. A., & Malecki, C. M. (2010). Attributional style from middle childhood to early adolescence:  Further validation of the paper and pencil versions of the Children’s Attributional Style Interview. Assessment, 17, 294-307.
  • Rueger, S. Y., Malecki, C. K., & Demaray, M. K. (2010). Relationship between multiple sources of perceived social support and psychological and academic adjustment in early adolescence: Comparisons across gender. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 39, 47-61.
  • Rueger, S. Y., McNamara, P., & King, A. C. (2009). Expanding the utility of the Biphasic Alcohol Effects Scale. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 33, 1-9.
  • Demaray, M. K., Malecki, C. K., Rueger, S. Y., Brown, S. E., & Hodgson, K. K. (2009). The role of importance ratings of socially supportive behaviors in the relationship between social support and self-concept. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 38, 13-28.
  • Rueger, S. Y., Malecki, C. K., & Demaray, M. K. (2008).  Gender differences in the relationship between
    perceived social support and student adjustment during early adolescence. School Psychology Quarterly, 23, 496-514
  • Rueger, S. Y., & Malecki, C. M. (2007). Group administration of the Children’s Attributional Style Interview.  Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 36, 1-7.

Selected Presentations

  • Rueger, S. Y., & King, A. C. (2011, June). Validation of the Brief Biphasic Alcohol Effects Scale (B-BAES) in high risk drinkers. Poster to be presented at the annual meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism, Atlanta, GA.
  • Rueger, S. Y., Malecki, C. K., & Demaray, M. K. (2010, March). Stability of early adolescent peer victimization: Timing and duration effects. Paper presented at the annual convention of the National Association for School Psychologists, Chicago, IL.
  • Rueger, S. Y., Ortiz, J., Dickson, A., & Malecki, C. K. (2010, March). A meta-analysis of school-based social support and depression. Poster presented at the annual convention of the National Association for School Psychologists, Chicago, IL.
  • Rueger, S. Y., & Malecki, C. K. (2008, November). Effects of stress, attributional style, and perceived parental support on depressive symptoms in early adolescence: A prospective analysis. Poster presented at the annual conference of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, Orlando, FL.
  • Rueger, S. Y., & Lovejoy, M. C. (2008, May). Unique contributions of optimism and pessimism in early adolescence. Poster presented at the annual conference of the Association for Psychological Science, Chicago, Illinois.
  • Rueger, S. Y., & Haines, B. A. (2007, March). Measurement of attributional style from childhood to early adolescence. Poster presented at the biennial meeting of the Society for Research on Child Development, Boston, MA.
  • Malecki, C. K., Demaray, M. K., Davidson, L. M., & Rueger, S. Y. (2006, August). How measurement techniques may affect prevalence rates of bullying. Poster presented at the annual conference for the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, CA.
  • Haines, B. A., Rueger, S. Y., Miner, A. S., & Lukk, A. A. (2006, August). Gender variations in parents’ attributions as contributors to children’s attributional style. Poster presented at the annual conference for the American Psychological Association, San Francisco, CA.
  • Rueger, S. Y., & Malecki, C. K. (2005, November). Psychometric properties of a modified version of the Children’s Attributional Style Interview in a sample of fifth and sixth grade children. Poster presented at the annual conference of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, Washington D.C.
  • Rueger, S. Y., Malecki, C. K., Demaray, M. K., O’Brien, V. A., & Leo, C. A. (2005, August). Social support for children and adolescents:  Review of the literature.  Poster presented at the annual conference for the American Psychological Association, Washington, D.C.
  • Rueger, S. Y.,& Malecki, C. K. (2005, May). Reliable measurement of attributional style in children. Poster presented at the annual conference of the Association for Psychological Science, Los Angeles, CA.
Share This Page

Media Center